Date
February 11, 2020
Category
Music
Type
Podcast
Today's guest William Westney is a concert pianist, professor at the University of Texas & the author of ‘The Perfect Wrong Note’ a book about - as the subtitle says - ‘rediscovering your musical self’. He’s a perfect guest for episode number one & of course that’s no accident.
During the episode we discuss his life’s work in education, as well as his deep exploration of practice & performance. At first glance, the concepts that William explores here are non-traditional, but as you will hear - they are from a tradition and musical wisdome that has been around for a long time.
What you will learn in this episode.
- Numerous principles and simple distinctions that will help enhance your practice
- A deeper look at what is meant by the ‘mechanics’ of practice - or as William calls it - ‘neuro-muscular work’.
- How to turn technical difficulties into pleasurable experiences and unlock their potential
- The radical mindset shift that helps think about mistakes differently
- How important it is to distinguish between practice and performance
- Why we should think clearly and carefully about what are goals are in practice
- How william thinks about performance & what ‘the zone’ is for him
- How to turn nerves into valuable food for your performance
- How the appropriate balance of risk & enjoyment actually encourages your brain to learn better
Quotes
“[mistakes] are not just about forgiving ourselves and saying ‘let me try that again’, it’s totally embracing the mistake and saying ‘what’s the information in that mistake?’”
“You have to make a thorough/physical commitment to every note”
“How can everything I do feel great?”
Links & items mentioned in this episode
- William’s Website
- The Perfect Wrong Note
- Dalkrose Euryithmics
- Music Garden
- Eloise Ristad - A Soprano on Her Head
- Williams research videos
- Daniel Coyle